The Beast and Beauty
by Lily MJ Fae
Summary: An Au where Severus is suffered as a spy and chooses to serve Voldemort. Forbidden love involved. Some torture


_**A/N:** This is my entry for round 10 of The Quidditch League Competition. I'm keeper for the BallBallycastle bats. I'm also a ravenclaw for the Hogwarts Houses Challenges._

 _1) Quidditch League: Write about a forbidden love between a dark character and a light character. It can be unrequited._

 _2) Quidditch Pitch: "You know what I hate the most? That I can't hate you at all."_

 _3) Drabble Club (yes I know it's a tad long for one, but I couldn't say no to the prompt and they have no word limit): Song; "Beauty and the Beast" by Nightwish_

 _4) The staff room challenge (as he's still a professor in this fic, it just takes places during the vacation)_

 _This is an AU in which Severus is discovered as a spy and given an opportunity to realign himself to the dark Lord, Voldemort._

 _Final Word Count: 2185_

"Severus, your disloyalty displeases me. I should torture you and kill you."

Severus stood tall, staring down the evil wizard. He should have been more careful, but teaching, torturing and spying tended to spread oneself very thin.

"But I'm going to give you a chance to redeem yourself, and realign your loyalties to me, and only me."

"My Lord," Bellatrix screeched out, "He's a traitor!"

"Bella, do you really dare question me?"

"But my Lord-"

"Enough!"

Bellatrix shrank back, looking ashamed at being reprimanded.

"You have access to Harry Potter. I want you too make one of his friends disappear. I want the mudblood to disappear."

Severus kept his face void of emotion as he bowed, "I shall do as you wish, my Lord."

* * *

 _Remember the first dance we shared?_

 _Recall the night you melted my uglyness away?_

 _The night you left with a kiss so kind_

 _Only a scent of beauty left behind_

* * *

What had he done? It was easy enough to take her from her home in the middle of the night, but he wasn't sure what to do with her now. She lay asleep in his spare bed, chained to the wall. He wasn't sure how long until she would wake up. Voldemort only said that he wanted her gone, not how.

He left her room to go downstairs. He wanted to prepare a dinner for when she woke. So he set about the kitchen gathering ingredients and pots. He began boiling the water and chopping vegetables. Then he added the pasta to the water and put the sauce on the stove in a pan. Once the pasta was done cooking, he drained the water and dumped the noodles into the sauce, cooking them with the sauce so they'd absorb the flavour. Just as he was plating their dinner, he heard a blood curdling scream.

"I guess she's awake."

He set the plates on a tray and had it levitate behind him as he journeyed back up the stairs and she continued screaming.

"Would you quit that racket?"

She stopped, looking at him in the open doorway, stunned and afraid.

"Snape?"

"That's Professor Snape. Come join me at the table, the chain is long enough."

"No."

"I made dinner, come sit and enjoy it."

"Where's my wand? Why am I here?"

"Relax, Miss Granger. If I was going to hurt you, I would have already."

"I will not eat with you."

"I think you will. You still have some sedative in your system."

He met her eyes with his own. It was clear she wasn't going to obey.

"Imperio!"

She fell under his spell, fairly easily.

 _"Join me for dinner."_

She walked over, sat down across the table from him and began eating.

 _That's more like it._

They ate in silence until Severus decided that there needed to be some sound and turned on the record player.

As they ate the last morsels, he grew bored of sitting.

" _Dance with me."_

She stood with him and walked to his arms and he embraced her, leading her in dance. She was so graceful and petit. Her beauty was truly stunning. He wanted her. He couldn't ever have the woman he loved, but she was here, under his control.

 _"Kiss me."_

She leaned in and placed and gentle kiss upon his lips. But it was empty. It wasn't right.

 _"Go to bed."_

She turned around and crawled back into the bed, falling asleep within moments.

* * *

 _I know my dreams are made of you_

 _Of you and only for you_

 _Your ocean pulls me under_

 _Your voice tears me asunder_

 _Love me before the last petal falls_

* * *

That night, Severus dreamt of her. He dreamt of the way her hair felt on the back of his hand, and the smell of her shampoo. And every time she spoke his name, his heart fluttered and he woke up, a pounding in his chest. He couldn't understand what he was feeling. It was different than anything he'd ever felt for Lily.

In the morning he made her breakfast, and left it in her room. He wanted her to warm up to the idea of being there, and so he had to be patient. He closed and locked the door behind him before headed off to join his master, as his mark began to burn.

* * *

"Severus, I am pleased. The Order is running around like a bunch of chickens without their heads. The mudblood was a great asset to them as Potter's best friend. Now he's probably furious and demanding they find her. What did you do with her?"

"Locked her away. They'll never find her."

"And what are you planning on doing with her?"

"I'm not sure yet. Torture has crossed my mind. But I think taking away her wand," Severus pulled it out and dangled it before putting it back in his pocket and continuing, "will drive her crazy. And she has no books. These may seem like small things, but I've been teaching her for years, and I know they will torture her more than any spell."

"There is nothing quite like removing one's knowledge and power."

"I am glad to have pleased you, My Lord."

"It's a start."

* * *

Severus returned home and walked upstairs. He heard crying from the other side of the door. He unlocked it quickly and walked in.

"Miss Granger, tell me why you're crying."

She looked up at him, and her stare killed him. "I'm sorry, please tell me how I should react to being kidnapped from my home by my professor, having my wand taken away, and having nothing but four walls to stare at."

"I'm sorry, but I didn't have a choice. You had to disappear. And by being here, you at least will survive."

"I'd rather die."

He sighed and reached into his pocket, pulling out a book whose spine was barely holding together. He'd taken it from her bookshelf. "I would have given this to you earlier, but you seemed a little disobedient. If you listen to me, and obey, then I'll do everything I can to make things comfortable here and I'll eventually let you free, unless it becomes too dangerous. If you don't obey me, then I'll have no choice but to torture you."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because, I had to. But I don't have to kill or hurt you. So don't make me. I'll be back in a few hours with dinner."

* * *

"Join me," Severus asked as he placed two plates on the table and Hermione sat on the other end of the room in her bed."

"Why should I?"

"I am asking. I won't make you do anything again, but I would prefer if you joined me."

She glared at him for moment, and then got up and crossed the room, taking a seat across from him.

"Will I be going to Hogwarts? Or will you leave me here and visit on weekends?"

"I haven't decided yet."

"Can I at least have my school work? I don't like leaving things unfinished."

"It's not done yet?"

They had dinner together every night. Some nights were better than others. He never meant to, but sometimes he lost his temper. It frightened her, but then she learned not to bring up leaving. And he felt himself falling in love with her. She was only 16, and it was wrong. But she was brilliant and beautiful. She'd grown slightly more comfortable with him. And she smiled and laughed, but then she remembered the situation and grew sad. He hated it when she was sad. Her eyes filled with tears instead of sparkling with joy, and her voice grew soft.

* * *

"Hermione, I know you want to go home, but I can't let you go. So I hope this is enough," Severus said as he led her downstairs. He'd changed his house, so she could go freely from her room to the kitchen and the parlor. And now, the library.

He opened the door and led her inside before removing her blindfold. She gasped as she inhaled a sharp breath. It was a small room, but Severus had installed shelves on every wall and filled them completely. There was a mixture of muggle and wizarding books, and she took it all in.

"I hope now you will be entertained. Your school stuff is in that cabinet."

"I-I-thank you, Severus."

His heart clenched at her use of his name. It was like a song to him.

* * *

 _Didn't you read the tale_

 _Where happily ever after was to kiss a frog?_

 _Don't you know this tale_

 _In which all I ever wanted_

 _I'll never have_

 _For who could ever learn to love a beast?_

* * *

"YOU RUINED IT! THAT WAS A RARE BOOK AND YOU COMPLETELY RUINED IT," Severus yelled one day as he walked into the library to see Hermione tearing a page out of a several others lying in a pile next to it.

"I-I-"

"GET OUT! GET OUT OF HERE NOW!"

"Severus, I-"

" _CRUCIO_!"

She doubled over in pain, her screams filling the room. As her body contorted, Severus felt himself filling with dread, yet he couldn't bring himself to stop until her screams subsided and she passed out.

He levitated her body behind him and chained her to the wall in her room once more. He closed the blinds and spelled them to stay shut. He spelled the lights to remain off and closed the door behind him, locking it. In their time together, he'd learned about her fear of the dark.

He returned to the library and gathered the pages, finding their place and casting the simple repairing charm. He wasn't sure why he got so angry over something so easily fixed, but he had. Maybe it was the content of the pages. She was trying to escape. And he didn't want to let her go.

A knock came from the front door and Severus got up to go answer it. Dumbledore stood there, looking disappointed and furious.

"Severus, I know you have her. Her family is worried, and so is Harry. Let her go."

"Have who? The Granger girl? She's been missing for weeks. I don't-"

"Funny thing is, she went missing when you stopped reporting in. I have other spies, you know. I simply don't tell any of you who the others are. Let her go, Severus."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I-I love her. And if I let her go, I'll never see her again."

"Severus, if you keep her here, she's only going to resent you. One day she'll escape. She's the brightest witch of her age, she'll figure out a way and then you'll truly never see her again."

"I'm not ready yet. If he finds out, he'll kill me, and then hunt her down and torture her. I can't risk it."

"Severus, I will not let you keep the poor girl hostage. You have one week. Otherwise the Order will be here to take her. And you'll be put in Azkaban, guaranteed to never see her again. Not even a picture in the Prophet."

"She's safe here."

"Then explain the sound of her screaming. I've been standing out here longer than you think."

"I lost my temper."

"You have two days Severus."

"What happened to the week?"

"I won't risk her life if you can't control yourself."

* * *

 _...Forever shall the wolf in me desire the sheep in you..._

* * *

 _Hermione,_

 _If you're reading this, then I'm dead. I can only hope you survived. You deserve to know why you were kidnapped._

 _Voldemort discovered that I was spying for The Order. He demanded that I realign myself to him, if I wanted my life spared. And in order to do that, I had to make you disappear. It was my only choice. But he didn't say how you had to disappear. So I didn't kill you, I couldn't. I kept you and I realize now that it was a mistake._

 _In our brief time together, I fell in love with you. And I know that we could never be together, even if I was still alive. But I fell for you, and that will not change. I hope that you get to live a long, happy life and find love, like I never did._

 _I know you must hate me. I know you must hate the way I treated you. And hate the fact that you were taken from your home in the middle of the night and isolated. I know you must hate the fact that I used the Imperius and Cruciatus curses on you. I hate me. So I wouldn't blame you if you did too._

 _Just promise me you'll live your life to the fullest and never lose your love of learning. Witches as brilliant as you are far too rare._

 _Love,_

 _Severus._

Hermione stood by the gravestone, blinking away tears as she folded the letter back up and placed it in her pocket. She looked down at the simple headstone for Severus Snape.

"You know what I hate the most? That I can't hate you at all."


End file.
